What is Cultivation? Part 1

Soon, the group found themselves sitting around Rella's room, much to her dismay.

Timothee, laying upside down and hanging halfway off the bed, looked over to Rella. "Sooo… How do we get more of those candies?"

Rella frowned at the young boy hanging halfway off the bed. "They AREN'T candy, they are beast cores, and you CAN NOT EAT THEM!"

Timothee laughed, flipping up onto the bed and flexing his muscles. "Well, I already ate one, and I'm still alive. I even think that I got stronger. Jaime! Come arm-wrestle me!"

Jaime laughed, consenting to the request. "Sure."

Their short arm-wrestling match shocked everyone in the room. Much to Jaime's surprise, even using his full strength, he was unable to pin the kid's arm. Timothee was even slightly overpowering Jaime.

Seeing Jaime get pinned, most of them assumed he was embellishing the young boy. But Jaime's shocked words proved them wrong!

"That's incredible! Even though I used my full strength, you still pinned me. Is it because of the candy?"

Rella yelled from the side. "It's not candy!"

Timothee beamed, laughing with his arms akimbo. "Hahaha, that's right! What doesn't kill you really does make you stronger!"

Jenna looked at the young boy, a thoughtful expression on her doll-like face. "Does it have to do with your cultivation? You said it increased when you ate the candy, right?"

Rella slumped defeatedly onto the floor, mumbling softly. "Crazy people, all of them. Talking about beast cores like they are candy."

The rest of them fell into deep thought, lost in their heads.

After a moment, Rella's voice pulled all of them back to reality.

"Although I don't agree with calling them candy, Jenna is right. I don't know how it's possible, but I can feel spiritual energy in that boy's boy, and it's no less than mine." Rella sighed, murmuring to herself. "It's actually kind of frustrating."

Aisha nodded her head. "That makes sense, but what is spiritual energy?"

Rella was shocked. "Are you messing with me?"

Aisha shook her head.

Rella sighed, shaking her head in defeat. "I'm actually starting to believe that you were all raised by wolves."

Rella sighed again, preparing her long-winded explanation. "Well, I'm not a scholar, but I do know the basics."

"Spiritual energy is like the spirit of the world, I guess? It is present in all living things and many times even in non-living things. It drifts through the air, always nourishing the things it touches. Certain places have higher densities of energy; these places are like treasure zones to cultivators. But, there is always at least some spiritual energy present everywhere in the world."

Jaime nodded. "Okay then, next question. What is cultivation, and what are cultivators?"

Rella sighed defeatedly. "Well, cultivators are people who can harness the spiritual energy of the world, using it to strengthen themselves. They draw spiritual energy into their bodies through different breathing techniques. These are known as cultivation techniques."

"Cultivators can then use that gathered energy to cleanse and strengthen their bodies, surpassing the limits of mortals."

Jaime raised an eyebrow. "So, if it's so simple, why isn't everyone in the world a cultivator?"

Rella shook her head. "No, it sounds simple, but it's extremely difficult to accomplish. If you think about spiritual energy as water, then everyone in the world has a chalice within themselves to collect said water. The chalice within most people's bodies is too small to catch even the most minuscule drop. And without any water, the chalice can't nourish the body."

Aisha piped up. "So, how do people know what their chalice is like?"

Rella gently closed her eyes. "Unfortunately for many, the size of a person's chalice is determined at birth. I don't know how it works, but people have created a system for measuring the power of someone's chalice."

"The system is known as measuring talent or aptitude, and it is measured using special orbs that change colors depending on a person's talent."

Everyone in the room shared an understanding glance.

Cain asked the question that was in all of their minds. "So, what color is the best?"

Rella put her fingers on her chin, making a cute expression. "Well, when most people grab the orb, it doesn't change color–meaning, their chalice is too weak to support cultivation. If the orb glows a dark gray, that means they meet the minimum requirements to cultivate. It will be an extremely daunting and near-impossible task to make it far, but they at least have a chance."

"If the light is bright gray, it will still be hard, but it's much easier than if it was dark gray.

Jaime nodded. "Okay. So, the brighter the color, the better the talent?"

Rella gently smiled at him, nodding her head. "That's right. Just because people have the same color doesn't mean they are equal. The person with the brighter color will have a large advantage over the other. It isn't as much as having a higher color, but the difference is still quite noticeable."

Jaime smiled. "I get it. Please continue; I enjoy listening to your voice."

Rella's cheeks burned a slight crimson as she seemed to get lost in space.

Jenna dragged Rella back to reality, making a gagging noise. "Ugh, get a room, freaks."

Rella got slightly upset, raising her voice. "You are all in MY room!"

Everyone laughed at Rella's outburst, but a sly smile spread over Jenna's soft red lips as she teased Rella. "Well, you two have already been in the bath together. You could just finish what you started~"

Rella's cheeks blazed with heat as she rose to her feet. "Why you-"

"Alright, relax." Aisha scolded them like their mother. "Jenna, don't tease her too much."

Jenna giggled, cutely sticking out her small pink tongue.

Jaime shook his head helplessly, looking back to Rella. "Well, I couldn't say no to taking a bath with such a beautiful girl. But first, can you finish talking about the talents?"

Rella gave a Aisha pleading look as she seemed to be the only one with any sense.

Unfortunately for Rella, Aisha just shrugged, shaking her head helplessly.

Timothee laughed boisterously. "Ahaha! If you don't want to bathe with my elder brother, this grandfather would gladly joi-"

Timothee's words cut off as Aisha smacked him hard in the back of his head. "Don't even finish that sentence, you little creep."

Rella glanced around, pouting cutely. "With everyone bullying me, I'm not so sure I want to explain the talents."

Jaime gave in, bowing slightly toward Rella. "I'm sorry, princess. I got carried away. Please do continue."

Timothee also bowed, although far more dramatically than Jaime. "This humble senior is also sorry. Although, the offer is still-"

"Don't. You. Dare."

Timothee cut off his sentence, feeling Aisha's death glare on the back of his head. 'I choose life!'

"Hahh, fine." Rella sighed. "I'll continue. But no more teasing!" She looked at the people around her.

Jaime put his hands up. "I'll do my best."

Timothee just grinned, not saying a word.

Jenna smirked. "No promises."

Rella looked defeated. "Well, I guess that's better than nothing… Okay, where was I?"